Veneer of Innocence
by Maveness
Summary: Everybody has secrets. Some are good. Some are bad. And some are so shocking...
1. Prologue

Author:  Maveness Delight  
  
Rating:  R  
  
Disclaimer:  It's not mine, I swear. Althought sometimes I am of the delusion that it might be mine. All credit for any characters goes to the comic people and the WB people, etc. I make nothing off of this.  
  
Feedback:  It's a love/hate thing. But please send it. I take all feedback constructively, unless you're unbearably rude and boorish, in which case, bite me, ahead of time.  
  
Author's Note:  This will probably be a very long project, seeing as it's only my second fanfic ever. (The first was a Lex POV that's not here.) But I just had to get out the first part in order to have a reason (namely people badgering me for more) to finish writing it. Otherwise it would sit in my computer endlessly.  
  
  
  
Veneer of Innocence  
  
Prologue  
  
It was starting again. Just under her skin. Just below the surface. Clawing to get out. The itch. The desire to be...different. Wild. To shock. Be free. She could feel it. Taste it. Bitter, rough. Overwhelming her senses. Her rationale.  
  
  
  
She had tried to control it. Do something to take the edge off. Take money from Mom's purse. Shoplift. Stay out late, past curfew. Get caught, be good...for awhile. Then, all over again.  
  
  
  
She got older, needed new, different thrills to satisfy. Sneak out to a club. Fake ID. Tease the boys. Feel desirable. Get them to a point, then stop...no. Leave them panting, begging for more.  
  
  
  
The chase, the tease, the build-up, then the refusal. It helped. For awhile. It kept the wildness at bay, the need from taking hold. Then, add beer, recreational drugs. Needing more and more.  
  
  
  
One day, caught. Not by the ever-forgiving parents. No, a cop. Public humiliation. The yelling, the fights. The eventual divorce. And then a move. Away from believed temptation. Away from the hell on earth of her creation. To a peaceful sanctuary. And for awhile, all was okay. Everything was good. A nice life, happiness set in normality and morality.  
  
  
  
But after awhile, just not quite enough. 


	2. Chapter 1

Chapter 1  
  
Chloe stood in the girls' bathroom, staring into the mirror. The door suddenly burst open, a group of giggling, chattering girls spilling into the room. Chloe started, then grit her teeth at the intrusion. As she quickly gathered up her bookbag, someone stepped up behind her.  
  
"Hey Chloe. You okay? You looked a little out of it just now."  
  
Chloe turned and found Lana staring at her, a mixture of curiosity and concern on her face.  
  
"Yeah, I'm fine," Chloe responded as she nervously tucked her hair behind her ears and averted her eyes. "Just, you know...thinking."  
  
Just then, one of the other girls called out Lana's name. While Lana was distracted, Chloe slipped out of the bathroom, glancing one last time at her reflection in the mirror.  
  
______________________________________________________  
  
God, she had been trying so hard. The whole "normal" routine. To be an All- American girl, or as close as she was willing to get to that ideal without losing all sense of individuality.  
  
She'd dyed her hair blonde, a subtle, honey color, not white-trash platinum. Eyes, well, brown was the norm, so colored contacts came next. The make-up, subtle. Highlight the features but don't make them stand out. Clothes - now there had been the compromise. She couldn't go so far as to actually even buy a sweater-set, so she settled on a funky/trendy look that covered her from neck to knee.  
  
The attitude had been harder. It had finally come down to her finding some way to channel her energy that would be constructive, rather than destructive.  
  
All-in-all it worked well. The look made her fit in. Maybe not as a part of the in-crowd, but she wasn't a social pariah either. Just another teenager.  
  
But she was tired of it. After two years of make-believe, she wanted a change. The hair, the clothes. It all needed to go. The Wall of Weird couldn't keep the demons at bay anymore.  
  
It was time for Chloe Sullivan to reinvent herself. Again.  
  
_____________________________________________________  
  
"Hey Chloe, have you seen Pete," asked Clark as he walked into the Torch's office.  
  
"Hmmm?" Chloe looked up from the computer briefly, a blank expression on her face.  
  
"Pete. Have you seen him?" Clark crossed to the window and glanced out as he spoke. "He said he'd meet me here after school."  
  
"Oh, Pete. No, haven't seen him," Chloe said as she looked back at the screen.  
  
Clark studied Chloe for a moment. She was staring hard at the computer, but the look on her face said it was doubtful she even saw what she was looking at. She was also nervously drumming her fingers on the mouse. Come to think of it, Chloe had been a little off for awhile now. She'd been quieter than normal and had been keeping to herself.  
  
"So Chloe, have you found next week's headliner for the paper?"  
  
"Mmmhmm," was the only answer he got.  
  
Clark merely raised an eyebrow at her ambiguous response, then grinned a mischevious grin.  
  
"Have you gotten any leads on new mutant activity in Smallville?"  
  
"Mmmm, yeah," was Chloe's mumbled response.  
  
Clark's grin grew. "Well, have you heard about old Mrs. Kimley? Apparently she really does have eyes in the back of her head."  
  
"That's great," Chloe replied, still staring at the computer.  
  
"And the football team is doing so well with their ballet training that they're performing La Bayadere as a fund-raiser for the Booster Club."  
  
"Good, good," was the only reply.  
  
"And Pete came out to the 3rd period English Lit class."  
  
That finally got a response. Chloe jerked her head up and said, "Huh?" at the same time that Pete walked in and stammered, "I am NOT gay!"  
  
"Caught that did you," Clark smirked at Chloe.  
  
"I don't know or care what's going on here, but I resent the implication that I'm gay. I love the ladies and the ladies love me," Pete stated beligerently.  
  
"Relax Pete," Clark hastened to reassure him. "I wasn't calling your, um, who you are into question. I was just trying to get Chloe's attention.  
  
Chloe turned her chair to face Clark head on. "Well, now you have it. What's up?"  
  
Clark glanced over at Pete, then back at Chloe. "Maybe that's what I should be asking you. You've been pretty scarce lately. And distracted too."  
  
"Yeah, come to mention it, you have been in absentia lately," Pete said.  
  
"Word of the day calendar huh," Chloe asked.  
  
"Yeah, now answer," was Pete's reply.  
  
"It's no biggie. I've just had a lot on my mind. Family stuff and all," Chloe looked away from the guys. "Really, it's nothing."  
  
Pete and Clark exchanged a worried glance. It was obvious this was something more than nothing.  
  
"Methinks the lady doth protest too much," muttered Pete to Clark.  
  
Clark spoke up. "Are you and your dad fighting?"  
  
"No, nothing like that."  
  
Pete jumped in then. "So, is it your mom then? She getting on your case?"  
  
Chloe stood up and grabbed some papers, stuffing them hurriedly in her backpak. "Look guys, it's nothing. No need to turn into the Spanish Inquisition here."  
  
She slung the backpack over her shoulder and headed for the door.  
  
"I'll see you guys later. I've got some stuff to do," she tossed back to them as she backed out the door, then turned and headed down the hall.  
  
"So, what was that all about," Pete asked as he turned to Clark.  
  
"I'm not quite sure," Clark said as he looked at the door where Chloe had just exited. "But something tells me it's not good. Not good at all." 


	3. Chapter 2

Veneer of Innocence  
  
Author: Maveness Delight  
  
Rating: R  
  
Disclaimer: It's not mine, I swear. Althought sometimes I am of the delusion that it might be mine. All credit for any characters goes to the comic people and the WB people, etc. I make nothing off of this.  
  
Feedback: It's a love/hate thing. But please send it. I take all feedback constructively, unless you're unbearably rude and boorish, in which case, bite me, ahead of time.  
  
Author's Note: This will probably be a very long project, seeing as it's only my second fanfic ever. (The first was a Lex POV that's not here.) But I just had to get out the first part in order to have a reason (namely people badgering me for more) to finish writing it. Otherwise it would sit in my computer endlessly.  
  
Special Note: In this chapter Clark will curse. I am of the belief that he does not use profanity at all, due to his upbringing. I know some people feel differently, but for this story, something has to be REALLY shocking or upsetting to make him use profanity.  
  
Chapter 2  
  
Chloe burst through the front door, slinging her bookbag to the floor and running up the stairs, shopping bags in hand. She quickly ran into the bathroom and slammed the door behind her. With jerky movements, she emptied the contents of one bag onto the counter. Various hair products clattered as they fell, some bouncing to the floor.  
  
Chloe snatched up a box of hair color and swept the other items to the side. She ripped open the box and pulled out the bottles of chemicals, tossing the empty box and instructions in the garbage. She stripped her shirt over her head, getting momentarily tangled. Finally getting free, the shirt was thrown to a far corner of the bathroom, to be followed by skirt and shoes.  
  
Chloe took a deep breath and glanced at herself in the mirror. The point of no return. As soon as she opened those bottles, the Chloe Sullivan the people of Smallville knew would be gone for good.  
  
Squaring her shoulders and setting her jaw, she started opening bottles and mixing chemicals. As she applied the hair color, she murmured to herself, "Never look back. Never look back."  
  
_____________________________________________________________  
  
Next morning...  
  
Chloe stood in front of the mirror, staring at her reflection. Her haircut was the same, but with the new color, it was like looking at a new person. L'oreal's Les Rouge Preference in Intense Red. Not the most flattering shade for her skin tone, but that wasn't what mattered. It was eyecatching.  
  
*You can't miss me in this,* she thought, watching the sunlight coming in the windows catch her hair and set it aflame.  
  
Her gaze dropped to her face. New hair called for new makeup. There was a rosy blush on her cheeks; barely there, but enough to keep her from looking wan and pasty. Her lips were done with a flesh-colored tone, just a hint of color. She had left the emphasis for her eyes. She had used smoky shades and lined them with dark, black kohl. Not the most fitting look for daytime, but hey, she wasn't trying to fit in.  
  
The clothes had been a challenge. Finding the right outfits to go with her new persona had taken some work. Her old penchant for red was just a bit too much with the new hair, so she had opted for darker, sleeker clothing. Currently she was wearing a black, fitted skirt that stopped three inches above her knees; black, knee-high leather stiletto boots (very Jimmy Choo); and a fitted, flesh-colored, long-sleeved top that dipped low in the front and had slits on the sleeves that extended from wrist to shoulder. Around her neck she wore a pendant with a black, teardrop stone that rested just at the swell of her breasts.  
  
Chloe quickly glanced down at her wrist, shoving several bracelets aside to look at her watch. An hour till school. Enough time to make her way there without being seen by any of her friends.  
  
She picked up her backpack, glanced one last time in the mirror and headed out the door, murmuring "Never look back."  
  
_________________________________________________________________  
  
Just as the bus was pulling away, Clark came running down the driveway. The bus ground to a stop and the doors hissed open, letting him on. He made his way back to where he, Pete and Chloe usually sat, only to find Chloe was absent.  
  
"Hey, where's Chloe," asked Clark as he dropped into the seat beside Pete.  
  
"I was just going to ask you the same thing."  
  
"Well, with the way she was acting yesterday, I wouldn't be surprised if she's out today. She really wasn't herself."  
  
Yeah, but Clark, she's never acted like that before. Kinda distant. Usually, when something's up with her family, she gets pissed and talks. A lot. And yesterday she was definitely not talking."  
  
Clark though about it for a moment. As the bus pulled up to the school, he said, "Well, maybe we should make her talk. Chloe bottling up her emotions can't be good for the safety of the general public."  
  
Pete grinned and shook his head. "Man, that was so wrong."  
  
_______________________________________________________________  
  
Well, so far her day had been interesting. Chloe had yet to see Clark or Pete, but she could bet they would hear about her new look before they saw her. From where she stood at her locker, she could see heads tipped together, furious whispering behind books and furtive glances (or outright stares) that were bordering on rude.  
  
So far two teachers had almost had heart attacks and one had actually checked her out. (Scarily enough it was Ms. Holliman, the girl's soccer coach and Spanish teacher.)  
  
As she exchanged her trig book for her biology book, she couldn't help grinning a little. Attention. God, she craved it. It had been so long since her mere presence caused people to take notice.  
  
She slammed her locker shut and headed for the stairwell. As she rounded the corner where the stairs turned on their descent to the first floor, Clark and Pete started up the stairs toward her. She stopped in her tracks and waited. The time had arrived.  
  
Just then Pete glanced up from his conversation with Clark. At first, it didn't even dawn on him who was standing above him on the stairs. Then, as realization and recognition sunk in, he stumbled and his mouth dropped open.  
  
Clark looked up to see what Pete was gaping at and nearly caused a collision with another student when he stopped dead in his tracks. For a moment there was a hushed silence amongst the three as Chloe stood there, hand on hip, while Clark and Pete merely stared in shock.  
  
"Hello boys," Chloe drawled, grinning like a Luthor who had just sealed a million-dollar deal.  
  
"Holy shit," whispered Clark 


	4. Chapter 3

Same disclaimers apply from the first part of the story.  
  
I know it's been awhile, but I've had a bit of writer's block on this story, plus I have been entirely too happy to write it. But I made myself sit down and write the next chapter, just to get myself moving.  
  
  
  
Chapter 3  
  
Clark and Pete just stood in the Torch office staring. Talk about a change. Which was what the entire school was doing. Talking. About Chloe.  
  
And she was sitting there. Typing. Like the whole world hadn't tilted off it's axis. Well, maybe that was an exaggeration, Clark thought. But she did seem to be ignoring the fact that she had completely transformed herself. For that's what it was. A transformation. Take everything that was Chloe, throw it out and start anew. Even her personality was different, which was by far most disturbing. Changing your appearance was one thing. But your personality? That was like, Cybill-scary.  
  
It had started when they saw her and continued up until now, after school. She'd been...flirty. She'd stood with one hip cocked, talking in a breathy, Marilyn Monroe voice. She was constantly touching one of them. And Clark could have sworn she batted her eyelashes at him.  
  
The normal Chloe who was bubbly and enthusiastic had been replaced with a...well, sex-kitten for lack of a better term. And it wasn't like she was limiting her affections to him and Pete. During lunch she had chatted up two football players, and while walking to English, she'd stopped to talk to the president of the chess club. But talking had included stroking his arm and whispering in his ear. By the time she had walked off, Jeff Peterson had been an incoherent, quivering fool.  
  
And so there she was, sitting at her desk, completely oblivious to the turmoil she had created.  
  
___________________________________  
  
"Um, Chloe? Tell me, what prompted this...change," asked Clark.  
  
"What, don't you like it," Chloe pouted.  
  
"Well, it's not that I don't like it. It's...different," Clark hedged. "It'll take some getting used to."  
  
He shot Pete a desperate look, hoping for some help, but Pete still looked dumbstruck. Clark elbowed him in the ribs hard. Pete flinched.  
  
It was at that point that Pete regained his ability to talk. Unfortunately his brain hadn't yet caught up with his mouth, so the first thing he said was, "What the hell made you pick red?"  
  
The look of hurt shock on Chloe's face. She reeled back as if Pete had slapped her.  
  
Clark smacked Pete upside the head and jumped in to try and repair the damage.  
  
"What he means is that red's just...it's..." Clark floundered.  
  
Chloe jumped right back in, eyes flashing as she began to get mad. "Oh, I think I know what he means. He means I look stupid, right? Like and idiot. And you agree with him, don't you Clark?"  
  
Here was another part of that personality change. Whereas normal Chloe would have ignored Pete's stupid and careless comment, this Chloe was flying off the handle. Chloe had a temper, but Clark had never seen her this quick to anger.  
  
"Chloe, I said no such thing. You look fine."  
  
"Fine? FINE? You can't even pay me a compliment and say I look great?" Chloe could feel herself start to tear up. Great they had reduced her to a crying, pathetic mess.  
  
"What about 'striking'?" she asked, voice cracking. "At least that sounds like a compliment, even if it isn't."  
  
"Chloe!" Clark's tone was sharp. "You completely changed your appearance. You can't expect us to be all gung-ho about this. It's going to take some getting used to. Give us some time here."  
  
"And a few explanations," Pete interjected. "Like why red?"  
  
"Pete, will you just can it with the red?"  
  
"But I want to know!"  
  
"Well now's not the time."  
  
"Oh, and when would be a good time to discuss it? Huh?"  
  
"Boys!" Chloe felt a surge of something like power. This was familiar. So the players were different, but the situation was the same. The status quo had shifted. And now all the power was in her hands.  
  
"No need to fight over such a silly thing as hair color. It's all very simple Pete. I just wanted something different. Something bold. So, I went red. It's just hair color."  
  
Pete seemed satisfied with that explanation, but it worried Clark. Chloe's mercurial mood was unsettling. Especially considering she had seemed almost pleased that he and Pete were arguing over her.  
  
"See, that was simple." Pete shot an irritated look at Clark. "Now, if we've had enough dramatics for one day, how about we head out and get some coffee. I could use some caffeine."  
  
Chloe graced Pete with a dazzling smile. "Pete, I would have to say, that is a brilliant idea."  
  
She stood up and grabbed Pete's arm, pressing it tight against the side of her breast. Pete looked momentarily shocked, then a blush spread over his face. As Chloe maneuvered Pete out the door, she glanced back over her shoulder.  
  
"Clark, could you be a sweetie and grab my bag?"  
  
Clark hefted her bag over his shoulder and followed after them, his mind racing. While Pete seemed ready to accept Chloe's explanation at face value, Clark wasn't ready to let it go. He would wait until they were alone, then he would find out what had prompted all this. Because it definitely wasn't normal, and it definitely was not healthy. 


End file.
